The present invention generally relates to software, and more particularly to software for discovering peripheral server devices on a network.
Computer network servers are an integral segment of the computer industry. Networks establish connections with at least one server which in turn initiate connections with one or more peripherals. Such peripherals perform many functions, including scanning. Some peripherals, namely multifunction peripherals, combine scanning with various other functions such as printing, sending and receiving facsimiles and copying. When a user wishes to perform a function, for example, a scan, it is important to determine which servers, if any, can establish a connection with a peripheral containing the required scan capabilities.
Known methods to determine available network servers include the user physically locating the server, using a name lookup service to ascertain the server's name, or using discovery software to find all available servers which meet certain criteria. However, as will be discussed below, each of several known methods has its own benefits and attendant problems.
A problem exists when the user attempts to physically locate servers on the network since this action can be time consuming, and prone to user error. Servers are usually remotely located, requiring the user to leave the workstation in search for one or more servers that can establish a connection to the peripheral that the user wants to use. The user is often not aware of some or all of the locations of the servers on the network. If the user does physically locate the server, it is sometimes possible to ascertain the address of the server by viewing a sticker placed on the server by a network administrator or some other person. Likewise, if the address is not written on the server, some servers contain a button that the user can press to send the server's address to an attached printer. Additionally, even after the user determines the address of the server that he desires, the user must manually enter the server's address, and such manual entry is prone to errors by the user.
Additional problems exist when using a name lookup service, such as a domain name service (DNS) protocol or service advertising protocol (SAP), to find the server. DNS is used for transmission control protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP) protocol networks and SAP is used for sequenced packet exchange/internetwork protocol exchange (SPX/IPX) protocol networks. A problem with using the name lookup operation is that the user must know the name of the server the user is looking for. Sometimes the network administrator writes the name on the server, but often the server is remotely located. Another problem with using the name lookup is that the name lookup operation will only find servers for the name that the user entered. Thus, the name lookup will not find servers of a different name that the user may wish to employ.
Further problems exist with known discovery software due to SAP packet traffic on the network. Among other things, SAP packets indicated the type of service being offered, as well as a network access point, i.e., network and socket address, which clients can use when accessing the server. While SAP gives scan servers and other service providers the ability to periodically advertise their services on the network, the SAP packet traffic causes congestion on the network. For example, traditional servers send a separate SAP for each socket being advertised, i.e., for each print socket and each scan socket. Thus, under the traditional scheme, a three port server would generate six SAPs since the server would send a separate SAP advertisement for each print and scan socket. Likewise, a one port server would generate two SAPs on a regular basis.
Another problem with known discovery software is its inflexibility. Typically, discovery software only allows the user to select from a group of discovered servers. There are times, however, that the user may wish to enter a known server address. Additionally, there are times that a user must enter a server address because the discovery software failed to find any servers.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide an improved method for discovering network peripheral servers.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method for reducing SAP traffic.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method for allowing the user to manually enter a server address.
Other objects and advantages will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description, in conjunction with the attached drawings.